1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an apparatus for measurement of a living body, having capability of intelligibly and understandably displaying living body information such as basal metabolism, visceral fat area, etc. of a person to be measured.
2. Prior Art
In the past, in order to know accurate basal metabolism of a person to be measured, an expensive and extensive apparatus was necessary. Additionally, many loads and measuring conditions are required, and the person to be measured had to keep at rest for a longer period of time with wearing a facemask and a mouthpiece.
In addition, only a specialist could handle the measurement apparatus and evaluate the measured results. As such the general public can hardly perform their own tests to obtain an accurate measure of their own basal metabolism.
For those reasons, a statistically standard basal metabolism value has been used in most cases to determine the basal metabolism. The statistically standard basal metabolism value is obtained, for example in Japan, by multiplying a standard value of basal metabolism on the basis of gender and age according to Health Service Bureau of Former Ministry of Health and Welfare by body weight. This standard value has been used despite the importance of a relationship between adiposis and basal metabolism.
Moreover, the living body information such as pulse rate, blood pressure, body fat rate, visceral fat area, basal metabolism, etc., have generally been displayed as the numerical values of measurement results.
The basal metabolism, however, is considered to be directly proportional to fat-free mass rather than to actual body weight. The basal metabolism determined using the above-mentioned method is only suitable for a human having a standard body build and a standard body composition, because body composition is a strong effective factor. However, a calculated value of basal metabolism tends to be higher than an observed value of basal metabolism in a pycnic type (i.e., a human with a high fat rate) who has a heavy body weight and a large amount of fat. On the other hand, a calculated value of basal metabolism tends to be lower than an observed value of basal metabolism in a slim and muscular man (i.e., a human with a low fat rate). Therefore, the above-mentioned method for calculating basal metabolism is not preferable from the viewpoint of guidance for adiposis.
Furthermore, as described earlier, the living body information such as pulse rate, blood pressure, body fat rate, visceral fat area, basal metabolism, etc., have frequently been displayed as the numerical values, but those numerical values are difficult for the person to be measured to understand the measurement result.
In view of the above an object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus for measurement of a living body, having capability of calculating basal metabolism of a person to be measured according to various types of body build.
Another object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus for measurement of a living body, having capability of intelligibly and understandably displaying any change in living body information to a person to be measured.